Oprah Struggles to Build Her Network

By

Christopher S. Stewart

Updated May 6, 2012 10:28 p.m. ET

Last summer, Oprah Winfrey sat down with executives at the Los Angeles headquarters of her start-up cable network to tackle its growing problems, from cost overruns to a scarcity of viewers and disappointed advertisers.

Over her 39-year career, Ms. Winfrey was used to winning. "The Oprah Winfrey Show" had as many as 12.5 million viewers. "O, The Oprah Magazine," had more than two million subscribers. And her...